H-5 Task 1

Question 1

What is total rise?

What is total run?

Answer 1

• Vertical distance from finished floor to finish floor

- Horizontal distance from face of the bottom riser to the face of the top riser

Question 2

What does Rise mean?

What does Run mean?

What does nosing line mean?

Answer 2

Vertical distance from one tread to the next

Horizontal distance from one tread to the next

Is an imaginary line drawn along the top edge of the nosing

Question 3

What does Tread Depth mean?

What does Headroom mean?

Difference between Rough stairwell opening and Finished stairwell opening?

Answer 3

Sum of the run plus the nosing

Vertical distance from the nosing line to the underside of the floor above

Finished is horizontal distance from edge of stair nosing at the top upper landing.
Rough is typically 3” (75mm) larger than the finished opening

Question 4

what does Stringer Support Board mean?

what does Unit of Bridge mean?

what does Effective Depth mean?

Answer 4

also known as ‘hanger board’, used to attach the stairs at the top to the floor opening

the hypotenuse of the rise and run triangle, used to calculate the stringer length

sometimes referred to as the ‘throat’, the material from the inside cut to the bottom of the stringer

Question 5

what is the minimum effective depth of a stringer?

Answer 5

3-1/2” (90mm)

Question 6

what is the minimum overall depth of stringer board?

Width

Answer 6

9-1/4’ (235mm)

Question 7

why are builders using LVL stock for stringers?

Answer 7

LVL is more dimensionally consistent and stronger than lumber

Question 8

What are the types of staircases?

Cut-out

Answer 8

• cut out (notched)
  - solid
• dadoed
  - semi-housed
• cleated
  - mitred
• housed
  - laminated into a curved stringer

Question 9

whats another name for stringers?

Answer 9

-‘Stair horse’ or ‘carriage’

Question 10

*

how can you reduce the thickness of a stringer?

Answer 10

using a support wall below the stringer, the thickness can be reduced actual thickness of 1”

38mm if unsupported

Question 11

what is another name for cut-out stringer?

Answer 11

‘notched’ it is the most common type of stringer

Question 12

where are cleated stringers used?

and other than wood, what other material can be used as a cleat?

Answer 12

commonly used outdoor construction or
temporary stairs

steel angle iron brackets are also used

Question 13

for dadoed stringers, what is the depth of the dadoed notch?

Answer 13

equals 1/3 stringer thickness

Question 14

where are housed stringers used?

what methods can you use for laying out rise and run?

Answer 14

Typically used in finished stairs

templates which are commercially made and are adjustable. or you can use the rise and run layout of the building square.

(include allowance for wedges to tighten the treads and risers in place)

Question 15

how many parts does a semi housed stringer have?

Answer 15

two: a cut out stringer and a plain stringer

cut out is laminated to the finished plain stringer

Question 16

when would you use a mitred stringer?

Answer 16

one or both side of the stringer are open (exposed staircase)

Question 17

what are curved stringers made from?

for wooden stringers, what is used for curved stringers?

Answer 17

• wood, concrete, and steel

- Laminated layers of thin plywood

Question 18

why is it important to ensure dryness in balustrade material?

Answer 18

tightly fastened posts will loosen considerably as they air dry

Question 19

what is the max spacing of balusters?

Answer 19

spaced that 100mm diameter cannot pass through them

Question 20

where would you use a buttress cap?

Answer 20

under balusters, shaped to take the end of the balusters and can be directly on the floor of a landing or raised off the floor to form a bottom rail

Question 21

how many landings in a narrow “U” stairs?

how many flights of stairs in a wide “U” stairs?

Answer 21

• two landings for “U’

- three staircases in a wide “U”, two landings still

Question 22

how many sets of winders allowed between each floor level?

the turn of winders, what degree can the winders not exceed?
and what are the degrees of these tapered winders?

Answer 22

• Only one set of winders

- Cannot exceed 90 degrees, tapered treads are 30 or 45 degrees

Question 23

what are landings used for?

Answer 23

turning staircases or break the total rise to create shorter flights of stairs

Question 24

what is the maximum total rise for a flight of staircase?

what does ‘flight’ mean?

Answer 24

• 3.7 metres

- stairs from one landing to another

Question 25

what is the minimum length and width of landings?

Answer 25

minimum lengths of 860mm to 1100mm depending on the staircase configuration, width is to match the staircase width

Question 26

two flights of staircases in between floors, are they required to be the same rise and run?

Answer 26

BC Building code doesn’t require it, but its good building practice

Question 27

what are the main parts of the balustrade?

Answer 27

newel post, handrails, balusters

Question 28

when is a landing require in a stairway?

Answer 28

when the total rise for a stairway is greater than 3.7m

Question 29

what is the difference of long ‘L’ stair and wide ‘L’ stair?

Answer 29

a long ‘L’ has a long flight and a short flight connected by a landing or winders

a wide ‘L’ has two similar length flights at right angles to each other